There's a tragic and conflicting story developing in Durham, North Carolina. According to their police department, a teenager in their custody for trespassing, somehow shot himself while handcuffed and riding in the back of a police vehicle.
A handcuffed 17-year-old North Carolina boy died of gunshot wounds in a Durham Police Department patrol car Tuesday morning, according to a 911 recording made public Wednesday.
Jesus Huerta was being transported to police headquarters on a trespassing charge by officer Samuel A.M. Duncan when, in the department’s parking lot, Duncan heard the shot from the backseat and jumped out of the car, leaving it to roll into a van with Huerta still inside, Durham police said.
In the recording of the 911 call, a police officer radioed emergency dispatchers just before 3 am EST Tuesday morning to report “shots fired” in the parking lot of the station. The dispatcher asked the calling officer if he was hurt, according to the recording. “I don’t believe so,” the officer said in response.
The officer is heard asking for medical assistance for a "gunshot wound. Approximately 18-year-old male, not breathing."
Ahead of the released recording, later on the morning of Huerta’s death, Durham Police Chief Jose Lopez said his department didn’t know how the young man died, but said “based on the preliminary investigation, it does not appear that any Durham police officer fired a weapon during this incident.”
Obviously Huerta's family and others have a lot of questions regarding the incident.
"We don't know if he had a gun. We don't know where the gun came from," he said. "Why wasn't he searched? We don't know when we are going to get the body. What was the cause of his death?"
Duncan, who joined the police department in July 2012, was put on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the SBI review, which is standard procedure.
The police department’s professional standards division and homicide unit are also investigating the teen's death.
When asked whether city leaders would ask for a review, Durham City Council member Don Moffitt said it was unlikely.
"But if we're not satisfied with the State Bureau of Investigation, then we could do that," he said.
Sadly it was Huerta's own family who had called the police because they were concerned about his safety that resulted in his arrest and eventual death.
Durham police are already under investigation for two other shooting incidents (I changed this line, as some commentators points out I jumped to conclusions in saying that Huerta was also shot by police):
The SBI is investigating two other deaths involving Durham police officers.
On July 27, Jose Adan Cruz Ocampo, 33, was fatally shot by officer R.S. Mbuthia after Mbuthia and other officers told him to drop a kitchen knife he held. Witnesses later said Ocampo was holding the knife out, handle first, to an officer when he was shot four times.
Ocampo was a suspect in a stabbing earlier that day. The stabbing was not fatal.
On Sept. 17, Derek Deandre Walker, 26, was fatally shot by Cpl. R.C. Swartz when Walker pointed a gun at officers after an hourlong standoff at CCB Plaza in downtown Durham. During the standoff, hostage negotiators had talked to Walker, who was distraught over losing a custody battle over his young son.
Another police shooting has sparked charges of racial profiling in Durham. Carlos Riley Jr., 22, is accused of shooting plainclothes Officer Kelly Stewart in the leg during a traffic stop on Dec. 18. Riley’s supporters claim Stewart shot himself and that the traffic stop was unwarranted.
Here's hoping the Huerta, and the families of the other victims of Durham police, can get some much deserved answers.
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